Detroit Wows as Dynamic and Memorable U.S.
Championships Host

by Liz Leamy

(29 January 2019) I’ve been in downtown Detroit since Friday
afternoon attending and covering the senior singles, pairs and dance
events at the 2019 U.S Championships and I must say, it’s been a
really cool place and also a spot where things seem to be cooking
socially, culturally and economically.

Detroit, a major American hub and home base for
hundreds of thousands of workers, innovators and entrepreneurs, who
were much of the reason it had successfully evolved into a
Herculean hub during the 20th century industrial age,
becoming the automobile capital of the country, that carried
through to the early 2000s, seems to be undergoing a tremendous
revitalization following a downward period in which the city had
filed for municipal bankruptcy in 2013.

The historic buildings that make up downtown
Detroit are visual delights characterized by big rectangle windows
and designs that emanate a classic early to mid 20th
century architecture style echoing a nostalgic time when this city
was helping to establish modern America as a world business and
economic leader.

Meanwhile, newer structures such Comerica Park,
home base of the Detroit Tigers MLB baseball contingent (with its
array of incredible tiger statues everywhere), Ford Field, venue of
the Detroit Lions NFL football team, and the Little Caesars Arena,
opened in August 2017 are incredibly impressive and echo an energy
defined by tenacity, hard work, optimism and strength.

The Little Caesars Arena is a whole experience
unto itself, as this state-of-the-art eight-story venue features
seating for nearly 20,000 spectators and a Jumbotron that is nearly
two to three times the size of any other one I’ve ever seen before.

Jeremy Abbott, the four-time U.S. champion who
had spent years during his competitive career training in Detroit,
said he was in awe of this facility.

“Let’s look at this arena, it’s amazing,” said
Abbott.

Meanwhile, practically all of the people I’ve
run into here have been friendly, patient and happy to chat.

At the same time, this contingent, who seem to
be very proud of living and working in Detroit, have been super
helpful in regard to giving directions around the venue and also
offering tips for navigating around the city.

Individuals working at the Detroit Metropolitan
Wayne County Airport, hotels and coffee and retail shops, driving
busses and buzzing about the Little Caesars Arena appear committed
to the idea of doing their part in regard to helping rebuild this
fascinating city so it arrives at a place where it is once again,
prosperous on all fronts.

As a whole, those at these and other venues in
Downtown Detroit, particularly the Little Caesars Arena, prove they
are all about teamwork and achieving a level of excellence in what
they do, rendering this as a very special American community.

The food hall at the Little Caesars Arena, for
example, located in the underground area, is so outstanding that it
has turned into a mandatory go-to place for all media members this
week.

Everyday, this stopping ground features an
extensive menu of delicious edibles such as steak, prime rib,
salads, string beans, potatoes, gourmet chicken and mouth-watering
pizza, among other things, all of which are worth every calorie.

Although this venue is so massive in size and
slightly challenging to figure out (especially on the first day) in
terms of understanding how to get around, it is worth enduring the
‘learning’ process in terms in every way.

Of course, with this
being the first time that the U.S. Championships are being held in
Detroit since 1994 (the year of the ill-fated Kerrigan-Harding incident which rocked the sport), the effects of the
country’s top-ranked skaters competing here is significant on many
levels.

“I think it’s amazing to have a skating event
like this here,” said Abbott.

The skaters agreed.

“It was great to be here in this beautiful
area,” said Madison Hubbell, who, along with her partner, Zachary
Donohue, clinched their second consecutive U.S. dance title here and
spent years training in the area before relocating to Montreal last
year.

Hubbell added that the crowd at the Little
Caesars Arena was also great.

“This was a good home crowd,” said Hubbell,
who, with Donohue, scored silver at the 2018 World Championships. “A
lot of our family was in the crowd [which was great].”

All in all, this Nationals was a win not just
for the athletes, but also everyone else who seemed to be on hand at
this all-important annual U.S. event, designating it as one for the
books on many important levels, mostly as a result of the
graciousness of the terrific Detroit crowd.